Helplessly in Love
by Chaobaby95
Summary: Ash has discovered that he is helplessly in love with Gary. No matter how hard he tries to push those feelings to the back of his head, they always come back. After three years of not seeing each other, Ash gets a chance to spend a week with Gary on his break. Ash then realizes that every single day, he falls a little bit harder in love with his rival, hoping he will catch him.
1. A New Direction

_Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or any of its contents. Because if I did, sorry kiddos, the show would not be for little ones. xD_

**Hey everyone! Here I am, with another new Palletshipping story! I've had this idea for a while now, and I just wanted to start it as soon as possible when I finished 'Friends with Benefits.' I wanted to get this chapter up too before I left for my New York trip with my show choirs! (So excited for it by the way :D)**

**Anyway, I don't wanna ramble on too much because you guys probably don't really care about these silly little author's notes xD So read on, and don't forget to review! **

* * *

_**Helplessly In Love**_

_It's not unusual to be loved by anyone._

* * *

At ten years old, an excited boy went on his pokémon journey, and it was the beginning of a wonderful life for him. As the days passed, he met two people who eventually became his best friends. It took a whole year to get his eight badges and enter the Indigo League. Then he started a new journey in Johto, which took two years, Hoenn one year, Sinnoh one year, and Unova two.

Now Ash Ketchum is seventeen years old and back in his hometown, Pallet Town. He decided to stop training and take a load off for a while. Only for a while, at least until he figured out what he really wanted to do for the rest of his life.

But he wasn't entirely sure yet. He was still thoroughly happy in his life right now though. Everything was almost perfect.

But only almost.

And he wasn't sure why it wasn't completely perfect yet. That was his new goal, to find the missing pieces of his incomplete life.

But as of right now, he shrugged it off as he met the new day, the sun shining beautifully on the vibrant spring colors. He took a deep breath as he noticed that his mom made breakfast, and with his excellent sense of smell for food, he could tell that it was blueberry pancakes and he couldn't wait to eat them.

"C'mon, wake up Pikachu! Mom made blueberry pancakes!" Ash shook his long-time yellow companion, who woke up with an excited expression.

After Ash put on a fresh shirt, they both ran down to see breakfast already ready on the table.

"Mornin' Mom!"

"Oh, good morning honey! You're up early," she greeted her son with a bright smile on her face. She had her straw hat and water spray bottle, obviously getting ready for gardening on this beautiful day.

"Yeah, I smelled breakfast from upstairs and I couldn't wait to eat!"

"Oh, well that's good! I made it especially for you and Pikachu. I always worry about your weight sometimes with that fast metabolism of yours…"

"Yeah, I know…But, I'm trying, you know that right?"

Delia smiled, and she walked up to Ash and give him a kiss on the head. "Yes, and I appreciate that…Oh! By the way, Professor Oak wants to see you sometime today to talk to you about something."

"P-Professor Oak? I haven't seen him in a while…"

"Yes, I know, so I think you should definitely visit him after you're done eating! It sounded important over the phone…"

"Okay, I will! How does that sound, Pikachu? Maybe we can play with some of my other pokémon that we haven't seen in a while!"

"Pika pika!" The little mouse agreed contentedly.

_**XX**_

The doorbell rang after pushing the ringer, and Ash could hear his voice say, "Come in!"

He opened the door and let himself in. "Professor Oak? It's me!"

"Oh, Ash! What a pleasure, it's so nice to see you!" The old but eager professor came into view, giving the young boy a chipper hug.

Ash chuckled, "It's nice to see you too, Professor! How are things going in the lab?"

"Oh, great! And not to mention, your pokémon are a big help to me in helping newer pokémon out as well! Of course, I should expect that from such a fine trainer!"

"Oh, please stop," Ash blushed at the compliment. "But that's good to hear! I'd love to see them, if I could."

"Oh, certainly! And while we're at it, I need to talk to you about something," The professor showed Ash the way to the backyard where all the pokémon resided in. Ash grinned at the sight, and he even spotted some of his own pokémon playing happily with others.

"Go on ahead, Pikachu, you go catch up with them," Ash let his partner run along to find his friends. "What is it that you want to talk about, Professor Oak?"

"Well, surely you must remember Gary, right?"

Ash paused, his mouth open, but speechless. He hadn't seen Gary in three years. He remembered seeing him when he was in Sinnoh, when Ash was fourteen. He didn't know what happened after they last saw each other, but they just suddenly stopped seeing each other.

"Y-Yeah…of course I remember Gary."

The professor smiled, a bit relieved to hear that. "Well, he is currently still working in Sinnoh, but since he's done such a fantabulous amount of work, everyone decided to give him a break for the week. Unfortunately, Gary isn't the type of person to just stop working, so I figured if there was something, or someone, to distract him from working, I'd greatly appreciate it. That poor boy has been constrained in his office for so long now, even his coworkers are worried about him. So I thought of this. Ash, I'd like for you to go in Sinnoh up to his lab and spend some time with him for the week. I'm sure Gary would love to see you. You two haven't seen each other in a while, correct?"

Ash was still speechless, even more now at the researcher's request. He just nodded.

Professor Oak chuckled at the boy's expression. "I know this is sudden, but I'm worried for Gary. He really needs some time off. I'd really appreciate it, Ash. I have plane or boat tickets ready for you at any time, I just need your approval."

Ash thought long and hard about it. He would absolutely love to see his old friend and even spend time with him, even though Gary was a jerk to him back then. But even if Gary teased him for the whole trip, he wouldn't mind. He missed that voice, that hair, those eyes, and that egotistical attitude. Ash missed him.

"Professor, I'd love to! Seriously, I haven't seen Gary in so long and I'd like to see him, really. What's the fastest way to get to Sinnoh?!"

The old man's face shined at Ash's approval, clearly enthusiastic to jump at any chance to get his grandson to take a break.

"By plane, naturally. I'll go get the ticket."

"I'll stop by your place later, actually. Let me go tell my mom and start packing! If you can tell Pikachu, I'd like that. See you then, Professor!"

"Fine by me! Thanks again, Ash!"

Ash rushed into his house and made a beeline to his room and got out his suitcase, packing as many clothes as he could as quickly as possible.

"Ash? Why are you packing, what's going on?"

"Professor Oak asked me to go visit Gary while he's on his break. I couldn't say no to that, I really want to see him!"

"Oh, wow really? I think that's a great idea, honey! But slow down, I need to make sure you're packing the right things, like clean underwear and everything!"

Ash groaned, "Mom!"

"Oh, be quiet. You're okay, though. Just don't wrinkle anything."

"I know, I know…"

Ash finished the remains of his clothing for the week, plus his toothbrush and hairbrush and just about anything else. He also prepared for the plane ride, even though it was only a short two hours from Kanto to Sinnoh, but he packed in music, snacks and a magazine even.

He replaced his jeans he was wearing with comfortable charcoal colored sweatpants and a white shirt. He even wore his classic league hat, and by then he was ready to go.

"Okay, mom I'll be gone for a week, but I'll be okay, I can trust Gary," he smiled.

She smiled as well, "Me too. But remember, you have a specific diet to follow…"

He sighed. "I know. I promise, I'll follow it, don't worry!"

Delia smiled, "I know. Please call me when you get there so I know you're safe. Have fun, sweetie," She gave him a kiss on the cheek and a longing goodbye hug before finally letting him go.

_**XX**_

The short boy laughed as he could see Sinnoh come into view, with Mount Coronet being the obvious giveaway.

"Pikachu, we're finally here in Sinnoh! I can't wait to see Gary…and I bet you can't wait to see Umbreon, right?"

"Pika pi!" Pikachu squeaked happily, his face in complete glee.

Due to Sinnoh being in a different time zone than Kanto, it was nearly sunset, but Ash wasn't worried.

"It shouldn't be too hard to find the lab. The plane lands in Hearthome City and then we can take the train to Sandgem Town where the lab is at..."

It was probably easier said than done, but Ash didn't care because as soon as the train landed, he rushed out of airport with his suitcase and smiled at the familiar sight of Hearthome.

"Remember this, Pikachu? Good memories here, huh?"

Pikachu nodded as its' eyes twinkled in nostalgia, admiring the city lights and the lively music.

But before they could get distracted, the train whistle blew, alarming them to get a move on quickly.

When they both sat down and the train started rolling away, Ash pulled out his pokégear to call Professor Oak to let him know he safely made it.

"Hello? Oh, hi Ash! I see that you made it safely!"

"I sure did! I was calling to let you know that."

"Well, I forgot to tell you some information, so I'm glad you called before you got to the lab! Naturally, Gary works with Professor Rowan, but afterwards, Rowan goes home after sunset when all work is concluded. But Gary also works and basically lives with a girl named Dora, and she's been working with him ever since he was positioned in Sayda Island. Dora's very nice, you'll like her, and also she has a sister named Crystal who I think you'll like too. That's all I wanted to tell you, Ash! Have fun, and please try and get Gary away from work as much as possible."

Ash laughed, "I'll certainly try, Professor. Thanks for the info! Goodbye!" He hung up the phone and noticed that they were already halfway there to Sandgem Town. Ash's leg started shaking up and down in anticipation, but not to mention he was also nervous. Very nervous, actually.

Three years was a long time, and it was also hard to keep in touch while travelling around the regions. He barely kept in touch with his mom in his journeys, and he barely spoke to Dawn, May and Max anymore. Misty and Brock were his closest friends, so unsurprisingly they all still kept in touch with one another, especially when Ash came back to Kanto for a break.

Gary was also a close friend, so when the brunette sees him, Ash was worried of the reaction. Would he be mad, upset, or happy? He hoped happy, so there wouldn't be any arguments that would ruin the whole aspect of the visit.

Not to mention, but when Ash saw him in Sinnoh the first time, he was overcome by this sudden adrenaline, like he _had_ to go wherever Gary was. As that day went on, the two rekindled their old friendship by working together as a team and Ash enjoyed that.

The second time Ash saw Gary in Sinnoh, he realized that he might've had a crush on Gary and he just didn't realize it. When the taller boy called him by his nickname, 'Ashy-boy,' that set his heart pumping and with immediate instincts, he got mad to cover up this feeling he had for Gary. Then he asked himself if that was why he got mad at Gary all the time. And he asked himself if he had a crush on Gary all this time without even knowing it.

When a year passed when they didn't see each other again, Ash decided to push those feelings to the back of his head, and he also believed that a handsome guy like Gary could never be gay or even bisexual and probably had a few girlfriends. Heck, he probably had one right now and they could be kissing right at this moment. It could possibly be Dora since she was living with him.

Ash shook his head to get rid of the thought and sighed. His Pikachu questioned him with a squeak.

He smiled, "It's fine. I'm just…reliving some memories."

But even Pikachu knew how his master felt about Gary.

**-Meanwhile in Sandgem Town…**

"Gary! Gary, open the door, I need to talk to you. Get off that damn computer, you're on break for Arceus's sake!"

The blue-haired girl named Dora rapped loudly against the wooden door that belonged to Gary's room. Soon after the knocking finally stopped as the door opened.

"What do you want?"

"Finally, you decide to come out of your shell," Dora placed her hands on her hips, smirking at Gary.

"Yeah, well whatever you have to tell me, make it quick because I'm going back in my shell."

She rolled her eyes. "You're on break! You should be resting or doing something other than work! Oh jeez…well anyway, we're gonna have a visitor come in for the week. In fact, he's visiting for you!"

"Really? Who is it? If it's another researcher that wants to learn about my studies or whatever then he can forget it!"

"No, he's not a researcher. Actually, he's supposed to be an old friend of yours. But if you don't remember, I'm still not permitted to tell you. Some kind of big surprise, I guess."

Gary rolled his eyes. "Well, when he comes in, just have him meet me in my room, I guess. I'll be in the backyard though, because I need to take care of some pokémon," Gary told her as he put on his coat. Even if it was the spring season, light snow still covered the scene and the temperatures weren't rising anytime soon.

"You don't mean to say you're going to _study_ some pokémon?"

"Whatever. I'll be a couple hours," Gary left to the backyard, leaving Dora in the dust.

"Oh, good lord, what am I going to do with him...?" She sat down, massaging her temples.

"Dora? Is it true? There's gonna be someone to stay with us for a week?" A voice erupted behind her, and it was her sister, Crystal.

"Yep, it's true! Professor Oak said he's really nice, so we don't need to worry about him being mean or anything!"

"That's good! Is he a lot of fun?"

"I think that's what Professor Oak said too. He's a former pokémon trainer, so maybe he can show you some pokémon that you've never seen before!"

"Oh my gosh! Really?! I would totally love that!"

Dora chuckled, "Well, we can ask him when he gets settled in, okay? I'm sure he'll be arriving soon…"

Thirty minutes later, the doorbell rang across the house. Dora opened the door to reveal a short boy with dark hair, and a Pikachu placed upon his hat. He had on a big grin as he greeted himself.

"Hi! I'm Ash, and you must be Dora, right?"

"Yes! It's so nice to meet you, Ash! Come in, you must be freezing," she welcomed him in after noticing he only had on a light coat.

"Yeah, I can't believe there's still snow here! It's probably all the lake effects and the mountains, huh?"

"Yeah, exactly. If you live in Sinnoh, you're in for a long cold season, haha! Did it take long for you to get here?"

"Nah, the plane ride was only two hours long, and the train took about thirty or so minutes."

"That's good. I see you have a Pikachu, how adorable!"

"Pika!" The yellow rodent blushed at her compliment.

"Thanks, Pikachu was my very first pokémon, so we're close partners!"

"Wow, that's awesome, so it must be very str-"

"OHMIGOSH, is that a Pikachu!?" Crystal ran beside Ash, her eyes sparkling in glee over the yellow pokémon. "Pikachu are extremely rare! There's barely any in Sinnoh _and _Saida Island! Aww, it's sooooo cute!"

"Heh, you'll have to excuse my little sister, Crystal. She can be a little rambunctious at times, but she's genuine."

"Oh, it's no problem, I'm sort of the same way," Ash confessed, letting Crystal hold Pikachu. "You can play with him, if you want. He won't bite, I promise. And don't worry, I'm sure you'll see Umbreon on the way soon, Pikachu."

"Oh, I can take him to Umbreon! I know exactly where she is! Thank you so much, it was so nice to meet you!"

The two laughed at the little girl running outside.

"Well, Ash, how about I show you around, and by then I'm sure Gary will be done with his field work. He's supposed to be on break, but he hates breaks…"

"Well, that's what I'm here for!"

"Haha, exactly! Okay, if you'll follow me to the kitchen…"

**XX**

Gary rubbed his arms as he walked back inside away from the biting cold. "Jeez, I didn't realize how cold it was outside…I hate cold weather."

He hung up his coat and tucked away his boots, noticing Dora come out of his room. "What were you doing in my room?"

"Oh, I'm just showing our guest around the house. And you told me to have him meet you in your room, right? Well, he's waiting for you, so don't take long on grooming, okay?" She joked around.

"Very funny. But thanks anyway."

Gary fixed his hair anyway so it wasn't too unruly for his so-called special guest. He walked in the room casually, expecting a researcher anyway, but it was actually the complete opposite.

His guest was facing away from him, but Gary recognized him right away. His raven hair, his hat, his short and skinny frame, and seeing the boy's Pikachu play with Umbreon earlier was a little suspicious. Then he realized his breath was cut short, and when he took a loud inhale, the boy turned around, his breath being taken away again.

Those brown eyes and that bright grin, it was unmistakable. Yet he couldn't believe it. Three years felt like three decades.

"Ash..."

"Hi, Gary," he shyly greeted, as he sometimes did around the brunette.

The taller boy walked slowly in front of him, getting closer to him until he finally believed that it wasn't a dream. He silently chuckled and he couldn't help himself as he wrapped his arms around him, smelling his natural scent, which always contained of bonfires and clean rain which it smelled good in a way.

Ash was taken by surprise at first, but also couldn't help himself when he felt a welcoming warmth radiating from Gary. His arms hugged Gary back and snuggled in his shirt, his hat falling off in the process, and trying to prevent tears forming in his eyes. They would be of happiness, though.

Then he heard Gary say,

"I missed you."

* * *

**D'aw x3 Okay, well that's the first chapter! I'm just gonna warn you guys, I don't know too much of Dora and Crystal, so sometimes they may be OOC, but I'll try my best, I guess. They won't appear _too_ much but they'll still be there xD **

**Anyway, I'll try my hardest to get chapter two up before I go to NY, but I can't guarantee it. But for now, please, please review and let me know what you think! :D**


	2. Something Missing

_'He's everything you want, he's everything you need, he's everything inside of you that you wish you could be.'_

* * *

"Ashy-boy," Gary rekindled Ash's classic nickname before pulling away from their hug. "What are you doing here?"

"Visiting you, what else? Professor Oak said you were on break for a week and he thought it would be perfect for me to go to Sinnoh and hang with you!"

"Oi…of course he would do that. But nevertheless it's a great idea, I mean I haven't seen you in what, three years?"

"Yeah! That was when I was training in Sinnoh…gee, that feels like a thousand years ago," he scratched the back of his head, hardly believing it.

"I know, jeez…Did you travel Unova yet?"

"Of course I did! It was a really cool place, and there were lots of new pokémon! It was also a really big region too…took me longer than Sinnoh."

"Yeah, so I've heard. I've yet to do research on it but I'm almost finishing up with Sinnoh so I can't wait to see what Unova's all about. But enough about that; what about you? What's going on in your life?" Gary sat down on his bed and motioned Ash to sit down as well.

"Wow, where do I start…? Well after Unova, there were no reports of a new region yet so I kind of just chilled at home for the past year…it felt weird just staying home but it gave me a chance to regroup with Brock and Misty, so that was nice."

"You mean, Brock didn't go with you to Unova?"

"Oh, no you didn't hear? He's a pokémon doctor now so he had to go to study some more and to train. So I went to Unova alone at first, and that was really scary. But I met some friends who were willing to travel with me so it was all okay!"

"Huh, really? I thought he wanted to become a breeder?"

"Yeah but I guess the more he travelled with me, the more he realized he'd be better off as a doctor, I guess. He's doing really well though, he told me he's nursed tons of pokémon back to health and even saved a couple from dying!"

"Wow, good for him. And how about Misty? She's still a gym leader?"

"Yep! Heh, it makes me kinda jealous because everyone knows what they want to do for their life and they're just always busy and I'm here doing nothing really…"

"Aww, I'm sure you'll find out what to do soon enough. You're still young and you've got plenty of potential to be anything you want, I'm sure."

Ash smiled and tried to fight back his blush. "Thanks, Gary. How've you been, now?"

"I've been pretty good. There are so many things to learn about pokémon and I always want to keep learning about them. It gets really frustrating and tiring at times but in the end it's worth it."

"That's good. But you do _know_ that taking a break relieves those frustrations sometimes, right?" Ash smirked.

Gary rolled his eyes and smirked back, "Yes, I do realize that. But it's hard to let go of something that's so interesting and you just know that there's more to it."

"Yeah, I understand. But while I'm here you better not be doing any work or I'll personally send your own pokémon after you."

"Psh, you wish."

Ash stuck his tongue out playfully. Then he smiled and couldn't resist hugging him again. Gary chuckled and gingerly snuggled in his hair and smelled his scent again.

"You have no idea how much of a relief it is to see you. Or even an entirely different person."

It was Ash's turn to chuckle after they pulled away. "I know exactly how you feel! Every day I feel like I'm seeing the same people over and over again and doing the same things too!"

"Yeah, and for me it's nothing but lab coats and reports and technology. I mean I love seeing pokémon as well, but I even get tired of seeing them, unless there's an entirely new species, which I'm kind of hoping there isn't _yet."_

"Gee, if there _are_ going to be new species of pokémon, I don't know what I'll do. I mean, I love it when there's new pokémon announced and everything, meaning I'll have to go through a whole new region just to check it out…but I don't know, because coming home after two years being in Unova, and that region is really far away from Kanto, mind you, I just felt really happy being _home,_ you know? So, I don't know…we'll see, I guess," Ash laughed breathily to let out some tension.

Gary observed the boy before him. He definitely changed a lot, that's for sure. He looked the same, but he somewhat had a tint of adulthood in his features, making him look somewhat…sexy.

Gary mentally shook his head. "You've been thinking too much. That's not good for your brain, ya know."

Ash smiled, "I might've heard that once or twice from a certain _somebody_."

The brunette smirked back at him, "You better have."

The two shared laughs, before Ash stifled back a big yawn. "I guess the jet lag is starting to settle in."

"Yeah, I bet. Why don't you unpack your stuff tomorrow, and get some rest now?"

"Yeah, that sounds great. But, um…where am I going to sleep?"

Gary grew silent and thought for a while. "Well, um, Dora has the master bedroom, Crystal made the guest room her room a while ago, so you could take the couch bed in the family room…if you don't mind Professor Rowan walking in on you in the morning."

"Umm…I don't think I'd like that," Ash chuckled nervously, Gary agreeing with another smirk.

"Well, you could sleep with me. If that's not a problem."

Immediately, butterfree formed in Ash's stomach just at the thought of sleeping next to Gary. He thought of being in his strong, warm arms, and leaning against his chiseled chest and kissing those amazing, soft lips. Ash couldn't help but blush at these thoughts and blushed even more when Gary started laughing.

"I'm not gonna rape you, if that's what you're thinking," he taunted.

"W-What? I wasn't thinking that…!" But now he was…

"Mhm, sure. If it's not okay with you, you don't have to."

"N-No, it's fine with me, if you're okay with it."

"Yeah. I mean when we were little, we had sleepovers and slept together. What makes now so different?"

'_Maybe that I like you?' _"Yeah, that's true. Sorry, I guess my brain really is frying up."

"See, what did I tell you," Gary winked playfully at him.

Ash just shook his head. "Can I use your shower too?"

"No, you have to stink for the whole week," Gary sarcastically remarked, sniggering afterwards.

The raven-haired boy rolled his eyes and smacked the laughing brunette's shoulder.

_**XX**_

Ash sighed with satisfaction as the lukewarm water washed away all the stickiness from being in two modes of stinky, claustrophobic transportation. The shower also helped a great deal of washing all of his overexcitement away, making his nerves relax. He lathered his body with a pleasant smelling soap, and shampooed his hair. All the while he thought about everything today, and he still couldn't believe that it's been three years since he's last seen Gary. The last time he saw him in Sinnoh, the brunette was fifteen. He was now eighteen and the changes were evident.

And Ash knew he was in a world of trouble. Ash used all his might to try to rid of his feelings for Gary. And after blood, sweat, and tears he finally pushed those sensations away and could live freely without them. Before he pushed those feelings away though, he always thought that Gary was a pretty good-looking guy and had his ambitions set.

Now though? He was handsome and sexy in all the right places. He grew a little bit taller and his hair grew a lot longer than it was back in Sinnoh, so it was unruly and Ash wanted to run his hands through it so much. He also wanted to feel Gary's built torso and broad shoulders and engulf himself into those gorgeous green eyes. He wanted to kiss him so bad that it hurt.

And then he knew that his feelings that he tried so hard to get rid of came back. And this time they're not going anywhere.

_**XX**_

After standing in the shower for an hour, the black-haired boy realized he should probably get out. Ash put his pajamas on and dried his hair thoroughly. Afterwards, he realized something else. He had to _sleep next to_ Gary. As if he wasn't anxious enough. Now he had to feel Gary's inviting presence and smell his cinnamon scent.

'_Arceus, help me…'_ He prayed as he walked out of the steamy bathroom and back into Gary's bedroom, where the brunette was laying down on the bed watching a show on TV, looking incredibly bored. But he put on a smile when he saw Ash, making his heart flutter.

"You took long enough."

"Yeah, sorry about that. There was a point where I just zoned out after I finished cleaning myself," he told Gary, obviously leaving out the reason why he zoned out.

"You zoned out?" Gary seemed surprised, not in a sarcastic way. "Do you do that a lot now?"

Ash sat down, his legs relieved. "I guess. I mean, I haven't been doing a lot of things lately so…I just think and zone out a lot."

"Has a lot happened after you finished Unova?"

"Surprisingly…yes. I mean it's not like it's life-changing, but a lot did happen."

"Like what?"

"They're not events, really, just changes in myself. I'm tired more often and I never know what to do with my life and it's just stupid stuff like that. And like I said earlier, I don't even know if I wanna travel anymore. I really don't know what to do."

"Well, you're only seventeen. You've got your whole life ahead of you, and you don't have to start making decisions now. It's perfectly fine to take a break from what you regularly do. It's sort of like finishing high school and wanting to take a year off before going to college or starting a career."

"Yeah, that's true," Ash smiled, taking in Gary's guidance.

The brunette then chuckled, "Maybe I should start taking my own advice."

"Yeah, you don't wanna become too stressed out, that's not good for you."

"Truth is though, I've been stressed out millions of times," Gary shook his head. "But I've learned to get through it anyway."

"What stresses you out?" Ash asked, concern playing on his face.

Gary shrugged, "It's nothing now, honestly. Let's go get some sleep, okay?"

One thing Ash actually loathed about Gary is that he never confided about anything. They were best friends and yet sometimes Ash felt like he didn't even know the older boy. Sure, he said many philosophical things, and mentioned a couple dreams and goals, but he never said what was troubling him unless he was physically hurt. But like Gary, he shrugged it off, only for the moment though.

After Gary turned off the lights, they both settled themselves on the bed. They were considerably separated, but Ash still had butterfree in his stomach at just knowing he was right next to Gary.

Gary faced Ash, his green eyes shining like a Persian in the night. "Say, how about we go out for lunch tomorrow and we can catch up more, okay?"

The younger boy smiled and nodded. He was ready to sleep though, his eyelids heavy.

It was Gary's turn to grin. He moved an annoying stray hair away from the other boy's face, causing his eyes to flutter, and finally close. Before he could go into a deep sleep, the brunette mumbled,

"I'm really happy you're here. You have absolutely no idea."

Ash's new goal was to find out why.

* * *

**So I didn't get the chance to update this chapter before I went to NYC. Sorry Dx but I had such an AMAZING time! I want to go back, I miss it already! If you haven't gone to New York City, you definitely have to, especially if you're all for sights and shops and historical things! I recommend it! Especially Nintendo World, where I got a life-sized Mincinno plushie and a Celebi doll...haha...spend a lot on those but, hey it was worth it!**

**Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! Not a lot happened but I promise there will be many happenings within the next chapters! Please, please review, I'm loving the feedback so far! :)**


	3. Falling Slowly

_Falling slowly, eyes that know me, and I can't go back._

* * *

Sleep is a wondrous thing. Your brain shuts down, but your collective memories and imaginations turn into dreams. Your eyes are covered by the darkness of your eyelids, creating a calming effect, slowing your heartbeat and relaxing your muscles. Sleep is even better with reassuring warmth produced from the blankets and occasionally, from someone else's arms with the help of a kiss on the forehead. And then instantly, your entire body is filled with tenderness and then you forget about the world.

Sleep is indeed a beautiful thing. And Ash took the time to take advantage of it, snuggling his face into the pillow, smelling an alluring scent caused from somebody. He hoped it was Gary's.

Then his perfect reverie was broken by an annoying ringtone from his phone. He groaned as he forced himself to open his eyes and moved up a little to reach his phone, not even looking at the caller ID.

"Ash Ketchum!"

"Oh, Mom!" He was supposed to call her the minute he got into Sinnoh. "I…I'm so sorry!"

He heard her sigh over the phone. "Did you forget? You know I don't like it when you make me worry!"

"I know, again, I'm sorry. When I got here, I was just really excited from everything and in the end I got really tired so I went straight to bed without even thinking about it."

"Well, I understand. I'm just relieved that you're okay. So how's Gary? Did you see him yet?"

"Yeah. He's doing great!"

"That's wonderful, sweetie. I hope you two can catch up on a lot of stuff! Well, I'll let you go now. Just remember to eat and stay safe."

"Don't worry, I'll be fine."

They said their goodbyes and Ash sighed after he hung up his phone. His eyes were still a little groggy, but the rest of his body was waking up. He looked over to where Gary had slept, but the boy wasn't there anymore. He was a light sleeper after all. But Ash couldn't help but have that lonely feeling. Being right next to Gary gave him warmth and the ability to sleep like a baby. If only he was in the brunette's arms, leaning against his chest, then he would feel a thousand times better.

'_Oh boy…I sound like a hopeless romantic,' _Ash rolled his eyes at himself. _'Like me and Gary would ever get together.'_ But he can always dream, right?

Ash stretched out his body before getting up and putting on a pair of long, black sweatpants over his boxers. He ran his fingers through his tousled hair, combing out any tangles that were of a nuisance to him. He checked the time and saw that it was a little after ten.

'_I wonder when Gary wants to go out for lunch…I could sure go for some breakfast though,' _Ash frowned down at his growling, hungry stomach.

A knock on the door was heard, and Ash opened the door to see that the intruder was Dora. "Hi, Ash! Did you get a good night's sleep on your first night?"

"Hey, Dora, I sure did, thanks."

"Sure. Gary is talking on the phone with his grandpa and he's been like that for well over an hour so I'm sure he would've woken you up if he wasn't on the phone. So I was just making sure nothing was troubling you or anything. I made waffles for breakfast, if you want some."

"Oh, yeah, thanks a lot! Um, why did Professor Oak call Gary early in the morning?" Ash asked after letting himself out of the bedroom and into the kitchen.

"Oh, boy, Arceus only knows why. It's been happening quite a lot lately, and they're in a bit of a quarrel at the moment too…" Dora served him the waffles with syrup on the side, Ash thanking her.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah, it's been troubling everyone. No one really knows why they're fighting so much. And Professor Oak knows that Gary's been under a ton of stress these past couple years and it was his own idea to put Gary on break for a week or so."

"Why is Gary stressed?"

The blue-haired girl sighed, "It's a lot of things, to be honest. A lot of it was stupid teenager stuff when he turned sixteen, but now that he's eighteen he's much more like an adult. But he's also more confined than he's even been. Like seriously, he's a hermit."

Ash sighed as well, "He's been like that ever since he lost at the Indigo Plateau. Actually no, it kind of started after his parents died. We used to tell each other everything when we were five and we used to help each other out. But after I came home from the Orange Islands, Gary just…changed. He can try to be as arrogant and stubborn as he was before but there's still something missing."

"Exactly. I mean, Gary is such a great worker, and he's so determined and everyone loves that about him. Before he went to Sinnoh, he was absolutely determined about his work and wanted to learn about everything about pokémon. Now, he's still like that but he just looks more depressed than happy. I think that it's a lot of work for him, especially at his age. He deserves this break and he knows it but he won't accept it."

Ash frowned upon hearing this. He didn't like hearing this about his best friend. He remembered how confident Gary always was and nothing would bring him down.

Dora let out a nervous sigh, "Maybe I've talked more than enough. I'm sure there's a way for Gary to break his shell, especially when you're around. I think you'll figure it out. Now, I've got to help Professor Rowan with some of his studies. I may not see you until after you guys get back from lunch, so have a good one!"

Ash thanked Dora again and waved goodbye at her. He finished up his waffles and placed it in the sink. And then after freshening up more, Ash went to find Gary. He looked in the bedroom again, and there the brunette was, tossing his phone on the bed. He looked strained and it seemed like he didn't get a lot of sleep.

"Hey. Are you okay?"

Gary smiled the best he could and nodded. "I'm fine. Just woke up a bit too early, is all."

"Well, do you wanna sleep some more? I don't mind."

"Nah, it's okay. Did you eat breakfast?"

"Yeah, I'll actually be good for about an hour or more. So if you need sleep, go right ahead."

Gary shook his head. "I'm not tired anymore, honestly. I just need a quick shower, and I'll be good, okay?" He walked up to the shorter boy and ruffled his hair, emitting a whine. He chuckled before he left to the shower.

Then after a few minutes of waiting, Ash's phone rang again, looking at the caller ID this time. It wasn't his mother, but instead it was one of his best friends, Misty.

"Hey," he greeted after answering the phone.

"Hey you! You know what I love? People, especially best friends, leaving without a word!"

Ash scratched the back of his head. "Uh, right. Sorry about that. It was actually so sudden and I had to leave right away so I only had time to pack my things and say goodbye to my mom."

"Mhm, yeah. You could've called too."

"Yeah, well I forgot to call my mom the first thing when I landed, so you're not the only one," he smirked.

"Oh, really now? Jeez, Ash. Are you just gonna stay there and forget about the rest of us?"

"Of course not!"

"Haha, I'm only kidding. How is it over there?"

"It's going good so far. The only thing I miss is the warm Kanto weather. Sinnoh is just always cold by the mountains."

"Yeah, I bet."

Suddenly the door opened, revealing a slightly wet Gary Oak clad with only his boxers. This made Ash blush furiously, no matter how hard he tried to hold it back. Luckily, Gary wasn't paying that much attention and he reached in his drawers to get a shirt. During that moment, Ash took the opportunity to turn away from Gary and try to cool down his heated cheeks.

"Earth to Ash!"

"Huh? Oh, sorry Misty…"

"Jeez, you need to stop zoning off more often."

"I know, already!"

Ash could feel Misty's smirk across the phone. "Okay then. How long are you going to be there?"

"A week. Don't worry I'll be there for the majority of the events before your wedding," Ash looked over to Gary and had to stifle a laugh from the look of utter confusion the brunette was playing on his face.

"You better be. But anyway, have fun over there too. I got to go now, tell Gary I said hello!"

"I will. Bye,"

Gary cleared his throat, "Wedding?"

Ash nodded with a chuckle. "Yep. Misty and Brock are getting married."

"Wait, _what? _Misty and _Brock?"_

"You heard me!"

"But…what?" Gary couldn't even explain to tell how confused he was at the moment.

"You kinda had to be there."

"Well, no shit."

Ash couldn't hold in his laughter, "How about we discuss it over lunch, okay? It's a really long story."

Gary settled with the decision and shook his head with disbelief. "I really need to go back to Kanto."

"Yeah. You did miss a lot. But don't worry, I'll catch you up," Ash winked, making the older boy chuckle.

_**XX**_

Ash decided to go and check on his Pikachu for a little bit before they want to lunch, and insisted that Gary try and take a nap. The black-haired boy left after that, leaving Gary without a reply. He just shrugged and decided to relax on the bed for a number of minutes before he got completely ready.

Truth was, Gary was extremely tired. Not physically but mentally, of course. He was so tired of waking up in the morning to hear phone calls from his grandpa only to be yelled at in the end, no matter how normal their conversation started in the beginning. They fought about anything these days, and their relationship was slowly slipping. It was on a thin line, and it wouldn't be long until it breaks.

He didn't want to tell Ash what was going on between them because he knew how the younger boy adored Professor Oak and his discoveries. He was slightly afraid if he did tell him, that Ash wouldn't believe him, and that he would spite him. He wanted to start over with Ash and create a new friendship with him that wouldn't involve any harsh playfulness.

Also, Gary felt so depressed nowadays, and before Ash even came to visit him, the older boy thought about him a lot. Ash would invade his dreams and Gary would see his happy face, smiling like everything was okay. And Gary would also feel his small and lean arms wrap around his waist and hug him like there was no tomorrow, whispering sweet nothings in his ear.

Gary wanted so bad to tell him everything, but he still couldn't help but feel that Ash would judge him, even if he was the type of person that wouldn't even do that. Outside, Gary seemed okay, telling Ash that everything will be fine and that it's nothing. Inside, he's screaming for help.

_**XX**_

Gary and Ash got settled in a local café just on the outskirts of Sandgem Town with a nice selection of sandwiches. After they got their food, they sat outside for it was actually comfortably nice today.

"Okay, so please tell me this oh so long story that I would like to hear, please."

Ash giggled, "Alright, but you're gonna find out about a lot of things that happened in the past couple years, so don't try to be too surprised."

"I'll try my best, Ashy."

"Okay so, after I got home from Unova, apparently the word somehow spread that I came home, so Misty and Brock literally just barged in my house and they actually threatened me that if I go that long without contacting them ever again, there will be trouble for me," Ash shook his head, chuckling. "And so after that, we just started hanging out together like old times."

Ash took a sip of his soda before continuing, "Then there was this one day where Brock had to work, but Misty was off so we just hung out at my house for a bit. But then Misty starts saying things like her and Brock got really close through the years that I've been in Unova, and she told me that they might actually get closer than friends, and I told her that I'm happy that you guys are getting close and all, but then Misty said she didn't want to be too close to him because she had feelings for me."

The smaller boy started fiddling with the straw before continuing, "And one of the hardest things for me in the past year was telling Misty that I didn't feel the same way. Just seeing her try to hold her tears back broke my heart but I honestly didn't feel the same way for her. And then after that she just nodded it off and left. I felt so bad and I couldn't sleep for the rest of the night. But then the day after I found out Brock took care of her and they got together after all. I don't know exactly what happened between the two of them at that time but I'm guessing something really good."

Gary chuckled with Ash following up after. "Then a week later, Brock proposed and here we are, with Misty's wedding in about a week and a half."

"Wow, a lot did happen. I'm happy for them though, but I'm surprised that they want to get married this young."

"That's what I thought, but then again they've known each other almost their whole lives so, it makes sense in a way. So I'm happy for them too."

"Well there you go. Are you best man?"

"Yep! I expected it, but I was still really sentimental about it."

"Of course you were," Gary winked. Ash held back a huge grin and a blush.

The two finished up their food and paid the check. They left after that, the sun only a couple hours away from setting the horizon. They went up to an inspiration point, where the mountains took in the sunlight and changed colors, ranging from magenta to indigo. The sky was orange and pink, the clouds a shiny white and purple.

"It's so pretty…it almost looks like Kanto."

"Yeah, I know. Nothing beats Kanto though. Especially in Pallet."

"Do you think you'll ever visit Pallet sometime soon?" Ash had a sad but hopeful tone in his voice, and it broke Gary's heart.

The brunette sighed, "I'd like to. But even if I'm on break, I couldn't make enough time to visit. Plus, it's just…really hard right now."

"Will you ever tell me why it's hard?"

Hesitant green eyes looked into doubtful brown eyes.

"I will. I promise. It's just…"

"Not the right time?" He finished his sentence. Gary forcefully smiled before nodding his head.

Ash grabbed both of his arms tenderly, making him look at the shorter boy. "But you know you can trust me right? And that I'm here for you, through everything. And I'll try and help out as much as I can, no matter how difficult it is. Just _let me_ _be there_ for you."

Gary's heart raced at his touch and at his moving monologue. He wanted to break down in front of him so bad and tell him everything, but not yet, and not in a public place. But the moment they were in as well as the position, he was less than arm's length away and he wanted to kiss the raven-haired boy so much. The sun shone perfectly on his face, kissing his tanned skin and making his brown eyes vibrant. Gary could've melted right there.

But he ignored every feeling he had with all his mental strength, and he told him, "Yes, I know. I know I can trust you and all and I'll let you. I swear."

Gary then got nervous after Ash stared into him for literally a minute, before he finally let him go and smiled.

"Good."

_**XX**_

The sky was nearly dark when the two were halfway to the lab.

"Oh, by the way, I meant to ask you…how come you didn't have feelings for Misty? I mean all this time, I thought you…" he stopped talking after Ash stopped walking in his tracks. "Ash?"

"Umm…well, it's…" Ash fidgeted – his nervousness clear.

"What is it?"

His eyes were wide and seemingly innocent, but Gary knew he was hiding something.

"You know you can trust _me,_ right?" Gary joked.

Ash let out a tense chuckle before nodding. This was a secret that couldn't be held back, especially from Gary. If he ever wanted a chance to let the brunette know his feelings for him, then this was a good way to start it.

"Well, you see…um…"

"Hmm?" Gary arched his eyebrow, walking closer to the younger boy.

Ash gulped, looking into Gary's cat-like eyes. Then, he confessed.

"I'm gay."

* * *

**So three reasons why I haven't updated in quite a while...**

**1. Exams  
2. Unfortunate writer's block  
3. Watching Supernatural on Netflix. I can't resist Jensen Ackles and Misha Collins, okay I'm sorry Dx**

**But yeah, I'm really sorry for the late update. But on the bright side, school's out and I have freedom for the whole summer! Woot! Let's just hope I don't get any more bad writer's block and I don't fall into the deep, dark abyss of Supernatural.. ehehe. :D I hope you liked the chapter, we're finally catching up and we'll start seeing some romance soon! Hooray!**

**So don't forget, I really like to hear some feedback, so please review! It's greatly appreciated!**


	4. Lay Your Weary Head to Rest

_Don't you cry no more._

* * *

Gary swore his heart stopped at that moment. He could've expected anything from Ash, since he was sometimes unpredictable, so Gary was rarely surprised. But the younger boy's confession was a whole other thing. Gary was never really all that lucky in his life, and he could never stop his feelings for the boy, even when he knew Ash could never love him back. But now there was actually a slight possibility, but for all he knew, Ash could like someone else.

After a minute of rummaging through his thoughts, he realized he was making the air between them uncomfortable with his gaping mouth and his utter silence. Ash awkwardly coughed, the poor boy wondering if he should've said anything at all.

"I…I'm sorry, I just…w-when did this happen? Or more importantly, how?"

Ash just shrugged, "I honestly don't know. I just never pictured myself with a girl at all, and every time I try to think of it, I end up failing to do so and therefore…I just accepted it. I mean I've always enjoyed being friends with guys rather than girls and I always depended on them too. I've never been in a relationship with a guy, or rather at all, but yeah. That's how, I guess."

"And when?"

"Well I realized it back in Sinnoh, but sometimes I still questioned it before that. I think it was near the end of my Johto journey is when."

Gary gulped, taking every detail in. "Who knows?"

Ash embarrassingly blushed at this, "Only Pikachu, Brock and Misty. And now you. I still don't have the guts to tell my mom. Or even Professor Oak," he breathily chuckled.

It was Gary's turn to chuckle. "I understand."

The black-haired boy fidgeted around, now clearly nervous in Gary's presence. "So um, sorry for not telling you ahead of time…I understand if you don't wanna sleep next to me or anything…"

"No, Ash it's fine," he replied a little too quickly, and then he regained himself. "I mean, I don't have a problem with it at all. I just wasn't expecting it."

"Yeah, believe me I wasn't either…But thanks, Gary. Besides my mom I was always afraid of what you would think," he confessed after the two started walking their way back to the lab.

"Why?"

"I don't know, I guess it's just…I've known you my whole life and I don't wanna ruin our friendship over something like that."

Gary smiled genuinely. "Ash, as much as I'm surprised about this, I could never let something like that ruin anything between us. You're allowed to love whoever you want, and that doesn't make you any different from the rest of the human world. As long as it doesn't change who you really are, then we'll be fine."

Ash played a big grin, visibly relieved. "Thanks, Gary. I'm really glad to hear that."

They finally reached the lab, and Gary let Ash go in first, and he could not resist the urge to stare at his rear end, and he looked at it longer than he should have. Shaking his head, he calmed down his blush and prayed to himself to hopefully not lose control when in front of Ash now…because now more than ever, Gary wanted Ash Ketchum bad.

_**XX**_

Ash was in a near perfect state right now – he was in the most comfortable position ever, his face snuggled in the feathery soft pillow, blankets pulled up to his bare shoulders, and his breathing at an even pace. But he still longed for that warmth of being in another person's arms, or more specifically, Gary's arms.

Unfortunately, there was an uncomfortable sensation near him, something tugging at the blankets and nipping at his skin. He groaned and slightly opened his eyes to see a fuzzy yellow presence in front of him.

"Ugh, Pikachu…what is it? I'm still tired," he talked to his companion, his eyes slowly closing.

"Chuuuu!" Pikachu mewled loudly, something obviously bothering the yellow ball of fur.

"Okay, jeez I'm getting up…" He checked the clock and the time angered him, "Pikachu! It's four in the morning!"

"Pika…" His ears drooped, feeling apologetic. But it didn't last long when Pikachu suddenly perked up, now urging his master to get a move on already.

"Okay, okay! What, do you need to go outside?" His question was answered with a nod. "Alright, come on…" He didn't bother putting on a shirt, but instead covered himself with an extra blanket. Pikachu followed him to the door in the living room, where Ash finally let him outside.

Ash sighed as Pikachu ran behind some bushes. "Of all times to go to the bathroom…jeez," he whispered to himself as he quickly glanced around the living room, seemingly quiet. But then something – or some_one –_ on the couch caught his attention. It was Gary, lying on his stomach with one arm hanging from the couch. On the floor near the couch was a beer bottle and his cell phone.

Ash pulled a sympathetic face. '_Another rough morning, Gary? I guess Professor Oak called you again…'_

Ash scoured the rest of Gary's body, noticing that his shirt has been pulled up a little (or due to Ash's dirty mind, his pants were pulled down a little…) revealing some of his light tan skin. His hair was totally disheveled, as if Gary ran his hands through it a lot.

The younger boy quietly walked over to him, removing the blanket from him and placing it on Gary up to his shoulders. Ash then got on his knees and observed the older boy's face, lightly tracing his jaw line with his thumb. Then with careful consideration, Ash delicately kissed Gary's forehead, right below his hairline. Ash took a whiff of his hair, smelling cinnamon and apples and found himself delirious to the scent.

He slowly pulled away before Gary could awaken, and got up to go back to the bedroom, but not before letting Pikachu in. Ash could tell Pikachu saw most of everything by his suggestive questioning look, but the raven-haired boy just shrugged it off and went back to the bedroom.

Pikachu sighed a melodramatic sigh. The pokémon just couldn't wait any longer to see those two kiss already.

_**XX**_

The rest of the day went pretty normal, nothing special happening. Gary and Ash agreed to walk around the rest of Sandgem Town and even hang around the outskirts of Jubilife City, but not until a little later at night.

Right now, Ash is with Crystal outside, showing off some of his Unova pokémon and telling her stories about his pokémon training adventures.

"Wow! So you really saved basically the whole world a bunch of times! I like that one story with Lugia the most though, I think. Especially the part when Team Rocket helped out and even sacrificed their lives for you guys!"

"Haha, yeah I know! They can be really annoying and sometimes evil, but inside I think they're actually really nice."

"They sure sound like it. I remember when Gary told me about the talking Meowth. My first instinct was with telepathy, ya know but Meowth doesn't have that much psychic power to do that. Plus his mouth actually moves, right? So I was really surprised!"

"I know. I didn't even notice it at first, I thought it was some kinda puppet or mascot they had, but nope, it was a living, breathing Meowth."

They both laughed, but then they were interrupted by Dora. "Hey. Sorry, I have to cut short here, but I need to take Crystal home."

The little girl frowned deeply, "Man!"

"Wait, I thought she lived here?"

"She sort of does. Our mom lives about half an hour away and we take turns taking care of her. I get to take care of Crystal on my days off or when I don't work all day and Mom takes care of her when I work full time."

"It's a really tiring process," Crystal confided. Dora sighed sympathetically upon hearing this.

"I'm sorry, Crystal, that does sound tiring. But one day you'll get to be free," Ash joked, making Dora chuckle.

"Definitely! Well, thanks for all the stories! You have to tell me more when I come back!"

"I will, I promise!"

They said their goodbyes, and Ash walked back into the house, where it was in that quiet state, or maybe too quiet. He visibly gulped and instantly walked to Gary's bedroom. He knew that Professor Oak called him earlier and heard Gary shouting, and that's when Ash decided to go outside with Crystal at that time. But now the silence was deafening.

He took the risk to go inside and was quite shocked to see a broken cell phone laying next to the wall and Gary sitting on his bed, his hair back in that disheveled state and his fingers massaging his temple. Gary stopped after seeing Ash and stood up.

Ash was nervous to be around the brunette in his angry status, because sometimes he can be a little dangerous to be around, his voice in a loud volume shouting expletives and whatnot. Thankfully, Gary never hurt Ash in a physical way.

The shorter boy closed the door behind him in case Dora came back sooner than later. But then Ash thought maybe Dora took Crystal home because she didn't want her little sister to see Gary in this condition. Hell, Ash didn't even want to bother, but he was sort of hoping he could get Gary to finally confess in this livid yet vulnerable state. Still, Ash stayed right behind the door just in case he had to run.

"What…what happened? Are you okay?" Ash was the first to speak up after another minute of silence.

Gary sharply inhaled and exhaled, "Do you know how many times that stupid grandfather of mine called me?" He asked rhetorically, but it seemed like Gary still wanted an answer.

"N-No…I guess a lot?"

The brunette exasperatedly chuckled, "Nine times. In _one hour._ Of course I didn't answer the first four times because I didn't want to talk to him after he called me at three in the morning. But then for the next five times he called, I answered and every time he would raise his tone at me I would hang up. Because I'm so done. I'm tired of him ridiculing me and yet he still treats me like I'm supposed to be some sort of expert. I mean I'm not really an expert, not yet anyways. I still consider myself as a rookie because all the things I've learned right now are things that gramps knows about."

"Ridiculing you? I thought he would be proud of you…?"

Gary sighed again, only more softly. His eyes seemed broken, the green iris a shade darker than normal. "I'm ready to tell you now. But it's a long story, so I'd sit down if I were you."

Ash nodded, going to the bed and sitting down, and before that he looked out the window and saw that the clouds were getting darker. It was only around five, but maybe there was a storm coming. Ash looked at Gary. His arms were crossed and his face looked hesitating.

"The only thing I ask of you, Ash…please don't judge me. And _please_…believe me," his breath was raggedy and he glared at Ash, blinking not necessary.

He nodded, "Okay," and when he saw that Gary got more hesitant he quickly added, "I promise."

Gary bit his lip before relaxing a bit. And then he started, "Yes, okay he was proud of me. After the Silver Conference and after I left Pallet Town, I decided to do a lot more researching and that's when I found Sayda Island and Dora. I called there to apply and be positioned there and they accepted me immediately. Grandpa found out and he was so proud of me that I was taking things in my own hands, especially at my age at the time. So I was positioned there for quite some time before we moved to Sinnoh. Two years, to be exact. But those years…I've had better years," Gary shook his head as he recalled to that time.

"I went in there at sixteen years old. I was determined at first, and I was so set on achieving my goal, and I felt like nothing could stop me. But then you know, Dora and the other researchers start calling in more people to work faster on large projects. There were a lot of girls, a lot of them my age. So then I realize I'm working a lot harder than I should and I start having more needs. My hormones were off the wall. And then a week later I couldn't handle it anymore. I start hitting on girls and later on I get in their pants. More or less, I was a horny bastard."

Now rain could be heard pitter-pattering on the roof. Thunder was in the distance. It was as if it was portraying Gary's feelings.

"That went on for about a year and a half, until one of the researchers found out and told my grandpa. And that's when it all went downhill. Gramps decided to make me regret everything I did by making me work twice as hard and even make me work on holidays and all that shit. Month after month I got more and more depressed and less dedicated. Then Dora decided I needed to get out of Kanto, and I agreed with her. So just a little FYI, when we saw each other in Sinnoh I was still depressed. I just did my best at hiding it.

"But then you know, when I was in Sinnoh buried in my work I started realizing that maybe my grandpa never really cared for me at all. Throughout my whole time as a trainer and as a researcher, he never called me. I always had to be the one to call him. He doesn't call me on holidays, on my birthday, none of that."

"Not on your birthday? Not even on Christmas?" Ash asked, having a really hard time believing that little fact.

"Nope," he faked a smile. "I was all alone. Dora and Crystal tried to make it better but I just tell them to go celebrate with their family. In the end it's just me and Umbreon…and you know, in these cases I always think about my parents. They would never do that to me, and they would forgive me in the end even if it's something bad. They would understand. But gramps, he seems to always put work first for me. It's never about my feelings or what I want to do. It just seems like he has a whole schedule planned out for me and everything is just so predictable. My parents would let me do what I want. If they were alive, I know that my dad would knock some sense into him, and my mom would tell me everything will be okay," Tears were now streaming down his face.

Ash knew Gary didn't like to talk about his parents ever since they died. In fact, this was a first because the last time Ash heard Gary talk about them was the night they died, and he couldn't stop crying about how they died and how he was going to be all alone.

"Mind you, I'm scared of dying. I really am. But this year…it's just been so incredibly hard on me. I've been feeling things that I've never felt before and I get so scared of those feelings sometimes. And I have such a heavy burden on my shoulders and I'm tired of carrying it. I've had so many sleepless nights because of nightmares and thoughts running through my head like crazy," Gary ran his hand through his face, wiping away tears. "But the thought of killing myself may have crossed my mind once or a million times."

Wouldn't that be a surprise. Ash not seeing Gary for three years only to find out that he's dead. The thought alone scared him and now his own tears were forming. His hands were now gripping the bed sheets tightly, as if trying to contain himself from not crying too hard or losing his control.

"_Gary…"_ he whispered, afraid that if he spoke any louder he would burst out crying.

The brunette sighed, "I'm tired. I miss my parents and I miss how things used to be, and I just want someone to actually care about me. At least, noticeably. And I mean, not to put any pressure on you, but I know the whole reason gramps sent you here is just to distract me from being angry at him any longer. But if he keeps calling me like this I won't stand for it. I don't care about the shattered glass on my phone, it'll still work. Even if I am literally on break from work, I'm not on it mentally."

Gary stopped to take a breath, and Ash took this chance to interrupt, "I…If it makes you feel any better about me…I was really excited to see you. I mean, sooner or later I would've contacted you. Whether it's for Misty's wedding or some other thing…"

The taller boy smiled and walked closer to Ash, absentmindedly playing with the collar of the coal-haired boy's shirt. "Thanks, Ash. It's just…I really needed someone. And when I saw you on the first day you came here I was almost relieved," he was now clutching the boy's shirt. "Ash, I know this all may be hard to believe and understand but…I just really need you."

The tears stopped for Ash, but his big brown eyes were still misty. He looked deep into those emerald eyes that he loves. He stood up from the bed and grabbed Gary's hand that was gripping his shirt.

"I believe you, Gary. I never stopped believing in you. And I still stand by what I said. Let me be there for you. I'm here. I'm always here," Ash comforted him, wiping away Gary's falling tears with his free hand.

'_Goddamnit, I love you,'_ Gary thought, resisting every single last urge to kiss the shorter boy. He wanted to, _so_ _bad. _But this moment, right here, was too perfect. And just as Gary thought it couldn't get any more perfect, Ash pulled him in for a hug, his warmth inviting itself in and enclosing around Gary's body. The brunette lost his grip on the shirt and circled his arms around Ash, hiding his face in his black hair. Soon enough they moved to the bed, Gary still burying his face in the crook of Ash's neck.

And all Gary needed that night was to fall asleep in Ash's arms, the smaller boy lightly scratching his back and kissing his hair.

* * *

Finally x.x Sorry again for the month delay, guys I've had more Supernatural problems (I'm FINISHED with Season 7 though, I now have to wait for Season 8 in September for it to come on Netflix) and I also had some personal problems. But, hopefully that will cease, and I'll try and get more chapters in sooner than later.

Ahhh, poor Gary again :( Good thing Ash is there to comfort him! And the moment you've all been waiting for will be in the next chapter! Betcha can't wait, huh? ;D Don't worry, I'll start working on chapter 5 IMMEDIATELY. xD Also! I'm also going to be starting a new Palletshipping oneshot soon so look out for that sometime next month :)

Reviews are MUCH appreciated. And I'm really happy with all the reviewers I have so far too! Keep it up! xD Bye for now!


	5. Fall For You

_But hold your breath, because tonight will be the night that I will fall for you over again._

* * *

Throughout the night, Gary somehow ended up laying on top of Ash, his head comfortably resting upon Ash's chest. The black-haired boy didn't mind at all, though. Gary's body was warm, and it gave Ash the perfect chance to gingerly stroke his soft spikes. His hair smelled like cinnamon, and Ash would always take deep breaths to take the alluring scent in. His skin would sometimes form goosebumps whenever Gary moved his head near his neck, his breath running across his sensitive skin.

Ash had woken up a while ago, and he didn't dare try to move in this position. The moment was too precious. He wouldn't even move his head to check the time, but considering it was only slightly bright out, it was still early in the morning. He debated on whether going back to sleep or not, but his eyes refused to stray away from the man sleeping on him. This was a once in a lifetime thing, and he couldn't pass it up, especially when Gary is usually more in control.

He can only remember one other time Gary was like this, and it was the night his parents passed away. Ash went to check up on him and while the brunette was reluctant, he accepted his best friend and cried in his arms all night. But after that night, nothing was the same between them. After that night, a rivalry sparked between them and they wanted to prove to each other that they were better than the other.

Before Brock and Misty, and even before Pikachu, Gary was his first and best friend. And he missed him. Nobody could replace him, and Gary was one of a kind, in both a person and a friend. So dedicated and yet playful, and always an inspiration.

Ash sighed silently, but as soon as he did that, Gary started stirring about, and it was not long before his vibrant green eyes opened. Considering the state they were in, Ash had to fight back a blush.

Gary already knew though – he had woken up an hour earlier to find himself like this, but didn't bother moving because he was lazy and also _extremely_ comfortable. Ash smelled good and once he felt Ash caressing his hair, he fell back asleep.

"Hmm…I thought my pillow felt warmer."

Ash did a small snort and shook his head, "Nice to know that I can be used as a body pillow."

"Oh yeah, definitely," Gary replied jokingly while he moved away from Ash's body to stretch. Ash felt cold afterwards and resisted the urge to pull Gary back down. "Anyway, sorry about that. I guess I just somehow rolled on top of you while I was sleeping."

"It's not a problem, I didn't mind," Ash said nervously, sort of hoping that Gary wasn't too curious about that statement. But he shrugged it off, leaving the black-haired boy with a sense of relief (and a hint of disappointment.)

"Ahh…I gotta say sorry again for falling asleep last night too, we were supposed to hang out…"

"It's okay! We can just go tonight."

"I know, but we're basically halfway through the week…"

Ash frowned after that. He was right though, they only had half the week left together and time was running really quickly, unfortunately. Time flies when having fun, after all. But since the subject was brought up, Ash couldn't stop thinking about it now. He wondered if Gary was going to be too buried in work for the next couple years again and wouldn't have time to contact or visit him. Ash didn't want that, though. He wanted to keep in touch with him and keep their friendship strong, as well as making sure that Gary was okay and still sane.

Even if Ash was hopelessly and helplessly in love with him, he was okay with being Gary's friend.

After a minute of not responding, Gary got worried and gripped both his shoulders tight enough to snap Ash back to reality. "Hey…don't think too much of it, okay? We'll make the rest of the week last, I promise."

Ash looked in those encouraging green eyes and nodded, "I know. I'm sorry…I've really been thinking too much."

"Well, no worries, Ashy-boy. Tonight we're gonna have so much fun, you won't be able to think a single thought."

Ash had to constrain his perverted imagination for that phrase. "What exactly are we doing tonight, anyway?"

Gary smirked and moved away from the bed, putting on his day clothes, "Stuff that you probably shouldn't tell your mom about."

Ash furiously blushed, "What?!"

Gary rolled his eyes lightheartedly, "I'm kidding."

"O-Oh…"

"Or am I?"

"Huh?!"

The brunette smirked again with a snort, "God, you're _so_ easily flustered." After that, Gary left the room and closed the door, leaving a very flustered Ash hiding under the covers, an awkward boner slightly showing through his pajamas.

His body desired the older boy's touches and Ash let out a small, frustrated groan. The brunette never even touched him (besides Ash's dirty little dreams) and Ash hated how Gary can manipulate him into doing things without Gary even knowing it. Ash's face was hot from the blushing and his breaths were heavy.

'_Arceus…why do I feel like this all of a sudden? Gary didn't even do anything…except maybe show off that stupid smirk.'_

Ash wanted to cry. He was so hot and bothered, and feeling completely helpless anymore, he gave in and slipped his hand under his pajama bottoms, letting a whispery moan escape his throat after just touching his sacred area.

_**XX**_

It's not that Ash still felt awkward after his "session," but being around Gary still gave him naughty thoughts and he just wanted to kiss his goddamn face and scream his name when Gary moved inside hi-

"Ash?" The brunette snapped his fingers in front of the boy's face after he didn't respond for awhile.

His brown eyes widened, "Huh?" He winced mentally after his voice moved up an octave. He shook his head and calmed himself the best he could "S-Sorry…"

Gary raised both his eyebrows. "What the hell were you thinking about?"

"Umm…nothing, I just zoned out. It won't happen again, I apologize."

Gary just nodded, shaking his head with a chuckle afterwards.

As of right now, the two were outside hanging on a lawn swing for it was actually a beautiful day in Sinnoh, the air was temperate and relaxing and the sun was extremely vibrant, making everything colorful and the pokémon happy. Crystal was running around with Pikachu and Umbreon, Dora watching her carefully but reasonably. It was her day off today fortunately, for the first time in a while. So she chose today to spend time with her sister while Gary and Ash spent the night together.

"So um…can you give me at least a hint on where we're going tonight? Besides the fact that I may or may not have to tell my mom?"

Gary chuckled, "Again, I was just kidding about that. And I'll just say we're not gonna be doing much in Sandgem Town, just more in Jubilife. But I don't wanna ruin the element of surprise, okay?"

"Fine," Ash whined a bit, but shrugged it off afterwards. They talked normally until the sun was well beyond the horizon, signaling them to start getting ready.

While Ash was getting ready, Gary waited patiently for him in the living room. Dora came in the room to see Gary on the couch and took the opportunity to talk to him.

"Hi Gary. I hope you guys have fun tonight, but also be careful, you know how Jubilife is sometimes at night."

"I know. I'll keep a close eye on things, don't worry."

She smiled, "Good. Also, me and Crystal are gonna spend the rest of the night at my mom's house, so we won't be here when you guys get home. I'll be here first thing in the morning though; Professor Rowan needs some help studying the Phione breed."

"Alright, thanks for letting me know. I'll be sure to definitely sleep in and resist the urge to help you guys tomorrow," he sarcastically remarked, earning a smack on the shoulder from Dora.

"I'm ready," Ash walked in after the scene, and Dora set herself ready to leave the two be.

"Alright, have fun Ash. Don't let Gary frustrate you too much," she winked before she left to the kitchen.

Gary rolled his eyes, "Alright, let's get out of here."

_**XX**_

They first off started their night by walking on the beach by Sandgem Town, and it was also a quicker and easier way to get to Jubilife City. Ash enjoyed listening to the calming waves and watching the extraordinary moon set itself perfectly on top of the horizon. Ash only wished that they were holding hands and stealing light kisses from each other.

But Ash mentally shook his head – he didn't want to zone off again for the third time today and make Gary annoyed. Instead, he just looked ahead and saw some buildings and bright lights come in sight, which meant Jubilife wasn't very far at all.

The scene became even more breathtaking when they reached the city, with neon lights flashing, the large screen TV playing, and a large crowd of people just talking, shopping, and dancing.

"I've never been here at night like this…It's so cool."

"I know, I agree. I'm not much of a city person but Jubilife does have its perks."

Ash and Gary spent their time in the city doing many things, checking out the huge buildings such as the Pokétch Company and the Global Trade Center. They got the chance to go to the very top of the building to take in the sights of the whole city. On the streets, they got to see a couple battles, and even saw the ending of a contest on the TV. They checked out the Grand Hotel which consisted of a roomful of pokémon, a humongous swimming pool that can fit well over a hundred people, and a display room of rare artifacts.

While they exited the hotel, Gary realized he had to go to the bathroom real quick.

"Okay, I'll just stay out here by the entrance."

"Alright, but just be careful, there are some dangerous people out here that are willing to do anything, and you don't have any pokémon with you."

"I know, I'll be fine Gary, I promise. Go do your business."

Gary smirked and went quickly back inside.

It's been a few minutes later and Gary still hasn't come back. Ash figured he might've lost his way or something. He was just about to go inside until he heard a small noise near him. He followed the noise to an empty alleyway and saw a small Shinx nearby. It had a couple bruises on its face, as well as a seemingly broken leg. It was shaking and seemed terrified of Ash.

"Hey…are you okay, little guy?" He walked silently closer to the small pokémon, and it seemed to try and back away. "No, no it's okay…I'm not gonna hurt you."

The shinx hesitated at first, carefully observing the trainer and eventually decided that he was harmless. It mewled softly, sounding almost like a cry for help. Ash walked toward it more until he could crouch down and caress his wounds.

"What happened to you…? Did someone do this to you?"

The pokémon nodded its head, ready to cry at any moment now.

"Now, now…it's okay. Can I pick you up?"

Its yellow eyes seemed to say yes, and Ash carefully picked it up. "There now…We're close to the gate, so maybe I can find some more of your kind, okay?"

Ash then walked out of the gate that separated Jubilife and Route 202. Ash walked around a bit, and not too far from the city he saw a gathering of some pokémon that seemed curious to see the trainer. He smiled and walked up to them.

"Hey guys…so I found this little guy and he really needs a better home. I figured he's much better off in the wild with you guys…so can you promise me to take good care of him?"

The pokémon happily accepted his offer and the small Shinx seemed incredibly relieved. It thanked Ash by licking his face.

"Hey! Haha, you're welcome. Watch out now, stay safe."

He loved the sight of welcoming pokémon, and it's the reason why he's a trainer and the reason why he wants to do something that involves being with pokémon and training them and making sure that his pokémon knows the value of friendship.

He walked back to the gate, and then his smile dissipated when he saw an unfamiliar presence standing in front of it. He was tall and a bit bulky, with black spiky hair and piercing yellow eyes.

"Did you just release my Shinx?"

At first Ash was confused, but then he quickly realized who this person was. "Oh. So you're that trainer who abused that poor pokémon?"

He showed off an ugly smirk, "That lil' bitch deserved it."

The raven-haired boy's heart skipped a beat. "What did you just call it? Seriously, whether it did something bad or not, no pokémon ever deserves a beating! What kind of trainer are you?"

"Please. I only want the best pokémon on my team and so if it loses, I beat them up until it is of no use to me."

This guy strongly reminded Ash of Paul. At least Paul was nice enough to release the pokémon rather than beat them up.

"You make me sick."

Ash had no time to run as the guy picked him up and roughly pushed him against the tree. The breath was taken out of him for a second, and then he winced at the pain of his back and his head.

"Yeah well, kids like you make me wanna punch their stomach in until they throw up their guts."

The guy then raised his fist, and Ash closed his eyes to embrace the pain, but then he heard something, a low growl. He opened his eyes to see the man's fist being clenched by a Scizor's claw.

"Let go of him."

They both looked to their left to see a brunette.

"G-Gary…"

"Who the hell are you? His boyfriend or something? I gotta say, he's pretty weak-"

"Either you let him go or I'll have my Scizor cut your arm off," he threatened, his green eyes raging with fire.

The bulky man seemed terrified of this threat only because of the situation he was in, so he dropped Ash, the smaller boy falling to his knees.

Gary walked up to the man and ordered his Scizor to let him go, but not before grabbing his shirt and merely told him, "Now get the fuck out of here."

The brunette let him go and he ran back into the city. Then his mood changed and dropped to Ash's level. His cheeks were wet of his tears but Ash tried to wipe away any new ones. "Are you okay? You're not hurt, are you? Please stop crying."

"I'm f-fine…The man, he was…hurting a pokémon so I released it back into the wild. He must've followed me here or something. I'm sorry, I should've stayed…" His voice was small, like he didn't deserve Gary's attention. He shut his eyes tightly to prevent more tears from falling out. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to worry you or anything…"

Gary's heart was breaking. "Shh…Ash, it's okay…I'm not mad or anything. I understand why you did it. Come on, please don't cry anymore…" He placed a calm hand on Ash's cold cheeks and wiped away the tears. This caused Ash's eyes to open and look into Gary's now comforting eyes.

"There we go…Can you stand up? I know what'll make you feel better again."

Ash nodded. He was shaky at first but he was back to normal again. Gary led him back into the city to a vendor near the gate. Ash looked at the sign and it said, '_I scream for ice cream.' _Then he looked back down to see Gary offering him a small bowl of ice cream, cotton candy flavored – his favorite.

Ash grinned and graciously took the ice cream and started eating it. Gary smiled, relieved. He knew that ice cream plus Ash Ketchum equals a very happy Ash Ketchum.

_**XX**_

After Ash finished up his ice cream, they started going back home, but instead they took Route 202 instead of the beach route. The walk was quiet, but they could hear the kricketot in the trees.

When Sandgem Town was in sight, Ash noticed a path leading somewhere else. "Where does this go, Gary?"

"That leads to Lake Verity."

"Oh! Can we go there real quick? I didn't get to see it much when I was in Sinnoh back then, and I'd like to see it again."

"Yeah, sure."

Ash followed Gary into the area, and the lake was in sight. It was relatively small, but large enough for fishing and swimming. The moon shined on the lake, making it glow and enjoyable to look at.

"It's so pretty…"

"Yeah. I come here a lot for fresh air and to think. Nobody ever comes here anymore either, since the beach is like right there in Sandgem Town and not a lot happens here. Plus there haven't been any sightings of Mesprit in a couple years either. So it's nice and quiet here." Gary sat down on the edge of the lake, with Ash joining him.

"That's nice…it probably reminds you of Pallet Town then, huh?"

Gary nodded in an upsetting way, "Yeah. It really does."

Ash lowered his head in sympathy, "Sorry…"

The brunette shook his head and smiled, "Stop saying sorry."

Ash then blushed at his foolhardiness and decided to be quiet for now.

The night was nice. The air was still relatively warm and dry, and the sky was blanketed with many twinkling stars, not to mention the majestic moon. The lake was extremely calm, there were only small waves gently touching the shoreline.

Ash could fall asleep right here and then because it was such a perfect night. But then his trance left as soon as he heard some rustling. He looked over to Gary and his blush came back furiously. Gary was shirtless and he was clad in only his navy boxers. The moonlight showed off Gary's sun-kissed body with such radiance that Ash couldn't dare himself to look away.

'_He looks like a Greek god…Arceus, he's so beautiful.'_

"Like what you see, Ashy?"

His teasing voice pulled his head out of the clouds and Ash started stuttering. "W-What? What are you doing?"

He shrugged, "I wanna take a night swim."

Ash widened his eyes and looked at the lake, then back at Gary, "Are you crazy? The water must be freezing! And you don't have a swimsuit on."

"So? I can swim in my boxers. But that reminds me, I haven't gone skinny dipping in a while…"

Ash's mouth gaped open, and by now he knew that his whole face was red as a tomato. He decided to look away from Gary before he makes any more weird faces in front of Gary.

"You're crazy."

"Nah, I'm just a risk-taker. Unlike you," he joked around as he stuck his fingers through his boxers, contemplating on taking them off. Then he smirked because seeing Ash's cute, red face was totally worth it. He slipped them off and made a sigh of contentment.

Ash closed his eyes after hearing so, and brought his knees up to his face so he could hide in them. Then he jumped after hearing a loud splash. He looked over to see the pile of Gary's clothes and his boxers were indeed off. Ash made a sound of irritation and pleasure mixed together. He bit his lip and waited for Gary to surface.

After he did, he cried out, "I cannot believe you! Isn't the water cold?"

Gary swam to the edge of the shoreline where Ash was sitting at. "Not at all. It's really quite refreshing. You should join me."

"How about no."

"Please, Ashy-boy? It's lonely in the water here, and it will get cold if you don't get in here," Gary pouted playfully, and he reached out to take off one of Ash's shoes.

Ash kicked his hands away, but his shoe still fell off. "Don't manipulate me!"

The green-eyed boy winked at him, "Oh I will."

Ash's face heated up once more and the boy in the water smirked.

"Damn you. Go away."

"No," he slyly replied as he successfully took off Ash's other shoe.

'_Please stop using that voice…'_ Ash thought as he could feel his lower area start to stir around. "Stop taking off my clothes!"

"You don't seem too resistant, Ashy," his hands slowly crept up his feet to remove the socks.

Ash bit his lip to prevent a moan, "Fine! Fine, I'll do it, just…stop touching me like that." Ash moved away from Gary, regrettably, and started taking off his shirt, but not before he realized Gary was looking at him.

"Um…Can you not look at me while I do this?"

Gary snickered and went underwater and swam in a different direction. Ash finished taking off his shirt and now started to undo his belt and then he unzipped his zipper. Clad only in his white boxers, he was extremely hesitant. He wasn't all that proud of his body and compared to Gary, he felt like he was only a rattata while Gary was a freaking Ho-oh.

Then he realized Gary popped out of the water and started looking at him again. "Gary!"

"Well, you saw me in my boxers, why can't I look at you? And by the way I haven't got all night here, it's actually getting pretty cold here, so get your tiny ass in here."

Ash pouted, "Okay, already…but turn around at least when I take these off…"

Gary obeyed and turned around, and a few seconds later, he heard a splash. He turned around but he didn't see Ash, not even for another few seconds.

"Ash?"

He heard another splash right behind him, and before he could act, Ash grabbed him by the neck and pulled him down in the water. He struggled for a bit before he broke free of Ash's grip and surfaced, along with Ash laughing.

"You bitch. You got water in my nose!"

"Did you just call me a bitch?"

"Yeah, 'cause that's what you are," he remarked before splashing water in his face for payback.

"Hey! Now you got water in my nose."

"Yeah? How's that feel?"

Ash pursed his lips before quickly swimming up to him and tackled him back in the water, where they were now play-fighting underwater, like they did when they were kids. They splashed at each other, pulled each other down in the water and all other sorts of things. They were having fun and they were sharing laughs, until Gary decided to get naughty underwater and grabbed Ash's ass while he was surfacing.

When Gary surfaced he burst out laughing at Ash's beet-red face.

"_Gary!_" He yelled at his former rival. "Did you seriously just grab my ass?" He continued on laughing. "You jerk!" He whacked his shoulder a couple times before Gary grabbed his wrist.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry. It was a spur of the moment thing, I swear." Gary looked in Ash's eyes and they seemed to have a doubtful look on them. "I really am sorry."

Then his eyes had a playful shine in them. "_'Stop saying sorry'_" Ash mocked Gary from earlier and before he knew it, Ash was the one the grabbed his derriere.

"You bastard!" He flipped Ash backwards into the water and then he saw Ash swimming away from him, so he decided to chase after him. The game of cat and mouse continued until they reached a shallower spot where the water reached just below their bellybuttons, where Ash stopped in his tracks to find a place to hide. However, it was too late when Gary turned him around, grabbed his wrists and pushed him against a nearby edge. Then he pinned his wrists against it and now Ash was completely vulnerable under Gary's strong grip.

Ash gulped. They were _really_ close to each other. Their torsos were almost touching, and their faces were only a few inches away, enough to feel each other's breath. Ash's eyes felt glued for they wouldn't move away from Gary's eyes. They had some sort of a..._longing_ look in them.

Ash was getting uncomfortable, but only because he was getting that hot and bothered feeling again. "Gary…"

"Shh…"

Ash closed his eyes because his focus was getting dizzy and muggy. But then he felt something else. His hands were released from Gary's tight grip, but then he sensed Gary's hands on his waist. And something on his lips…

Another pair of lips. Gary Oak's lips, Ash finally realized. And it felt way too real to be a dream.

He gasped inwardly, but feeling how soft they were, and how good they tasted, Ash couldn't hold back. He moved his hands to Gary's broad shoulders and kissed him back with passion.

And all Ash could say in his mind was, _'Finally.'_

* * *

**FInally is what I wanna say for this chapter! So much writer's block and distractions, ughhhh! But hey! No complaints because I've provided you with a reasonably long chapter with an ending that everyone has been waiting for! Yay! :D It's about time too, right? I was thinking today too like I HAVE to get this chapter done, and I'm gonna get it done TONIGHT no matter what! So here it is! Hope you guys liked it!**

**Also, a warning for the next chapter: it will contain *ahemsmutcough* so yeah! Be excited for that! **

**In the meantime, thanks for reading, please review (it is greatly appreciated) and see you guys in the next! **


	6. And We Will Dance Like Wildfire

_Tracing patterns in the maze of your back; softly, softly the goosebumps like that; and then a kiss, maybe another and another one._

* * *

It was everything Ash imagined it to be.

His soft lips, his alluring scent, his delicate touches. Ash dreamed about all of it, never really believing that it would actually happen. But here they were, under the beautiful night sky and in the calming lukewarm water, kissing each other with not a moment to spare.

Their lips moved against each other more passionately, and Ash took a moment to scour Gary's body with his hands. He felt the brunette's slim but well-built arms, along with his broad shoulders and chest. Then his fingers lightly grazed Gary's toned stomach and that sparked a desire in the brunette as he kissed him deeper, his tongue running across the smaller boy's lips.

Ash had never kissed anyone before, so this was all really new and naïve to him, but he was confident enough to part his lips to let Gary's tender tongue in. His tongue met with Ash's, and because Ash was inexperienced he only stroked it a couple times, but he made it longing enough to make Ash weak in his knees, and eventually Gary found himself supporting Ash up with his one hand gripping his raven hair and the other lightly placed on the small of his back, which was so unbelievably smooth. He really, _really_ wanted to touch every little detail of Ash, but he was anxious to see what Ash would do about that.

Their lustful lip lock unfortunately had to stop for they were running out of air, but not before Gary ended it with an intense kiss, probably bruising their lips in the process, both of his hands cupping Ash's rosy cheeks. Gary was about to fall in his pool of desire again but he snapped out of his trance once he felt Ash's hands touch the back of his own.

Once they separated, their lungs were screaming for more air, their chests heavily moving up and down. They were both blushing, but Ash was the more red-faced of the two. Gary took a good look at Ash, and his chestnut eyes were twinkling along with his perfectly swollen lips.

"Wow…" The coal-haired boy breathed out after a minute, making Gary show off his smirk, proud of himself.

The brunette wrapped his arms around his waist, while Ash wrapped his around his neck, a smile playing on his lips.

"You have no idea how long I've waited to do that."

Ash was shocked to hear this. "Really? How long?"

"Well, let's just say I didn't tease you all that time for the heck of it."

The raven-haired boy's grin grew wider, "Wow, Gary. That's longer than me."

"Good," he winked. "What about you?"

"I'm not gay for no reason either."

Gary showed a sly smile, "Oh? So that whole time, you were just thinking about me?"

"Maybe," Ash playfully bit his bottom lip before pulling Gary closer, wanting to kiss him again. "But this whole time, I thought you could never be gay. You just looked like a ladies' man."

"I guess part of that was because that's what I wanted you to think. I wanted to hide my feelings for you somehow by surrounding myself with girls and teasing you all the time. And even I tried to do that to myself, but even though I had sex with a lot of girls, I couldn't erase my feelings at all. In the end, all I wanted was you."

Ash smiled, "You know, it's funny. We both liked each other for that long but neither of us made a move until now. Why choose now, anyway?"

"Well, what would your friends say if either one of us decided to casually kiss out of nowhere?"

"True…but there was that one time during the Silver Conference – you know, a night similar to this, by the lake? You were saying all that philosophical stuff."

Gary chuckled, nuzzling into his neck, "That's surprising, that you still remember that night. And you were thirteen, Ash. I wanted to wait a little longer."

"Says the boy who became a researcher at fourteen years old. And hey, a lot of people get their first kiss at thirteen."

"Yeah, but considering your dim-wittedness at the time, you would've been like…_'what was that?'_ and then I'd have to go through the process of teaching you what a kiss was. And that would've ruined the moment," the brunette smirked after seeing Ash blush and shake his head.

"Okay, I was not that dense. I somehow beat you at the Victory tournament, remember?"

"Yeah, with you burning the goddamn battlefield."

"Hey! That was a good strategy."

"Mhm…" Gary just went back to nuzzling Ash's sensitive neck. Ash leaned his head back, making him more exposed. The auburn-haired boy lightly kissed the vulnerable skin, moving up to his jaw line, and then down to his collarbone. The feathery kisses felt pleasurable as Ash closed his eyes and let out a contented sigh, the sound filling Gary's ears like music. Wanting to hear more, Gary shifted his parted lips to the base of the smaller boy's neck and grazed it with his teeth. He heard Ash gasp silently and then as he exhaled, a slight moan escaped. And then he felt his manhood harden and twitch.

Hoping to stay in composure, Gary tightened his grip on the latter's waist, and kissed him again, nibbling on his bottom lip. Ash inhaled to smell Gary's cinnamon-apple scent and he was exhilarated, so without thinking he gripped Gary's lower back, fingernails nearly digging in the skin, and pulled him as close as possible. Their pelvises touched, and it was very slight – almost unnoticeable, but their sacred areas also rubbed against each other, and both of their skins jumped, forming goose bumps right after.

Ash pulled away, his face hot and flushed and avoiding eye contact with Gary, "Ahh…sorry."

Gary noticed though that during their sensual touch, he wasn't the only one that was excited down there. He placed a hand on the raven-haired boy's cheek and made him look up into his eyes, and then the brunette saw something in those brown eyes – a hunger for something, and this time it wasn't for food.

Gary cleared his throat, hoping to break some of the sexual tension in the air, "Let's get going, okay? I'm starting to feel numb from the water."

Ash, relieved (but also saddened,) nodded in agreement and they both made their way back to the entrance. They individually got out of the water, not looking at each other when they put on their clothes, and started their walk back to Sandgem. In the meantime, Ash looked over to Gary, his hands in his pockets. Then the black-haired boy pulled out his hand and grabbed it, both their hands now interlocked. Gary smiled and pulled him closer to give the smaller boy a kiss on the temple.

They finally reached the lab and all the lights were out, which confused Ash, but then Gary reminded himself to tell him, "Dora isn't here tonight. She's at her mom's along with Crystal, so…" Gary cleared his throat again out of nervousness after realizing that they were going to be all alone in the house.

When they entered the house, Ash decided he wanted to take a shower, and so did Gary. The lab had two different showers, so they wouldn't waste any more time. While Gary finished up his shower, he went in his bedroom to put on long pajama pants but didn't bother to put on a shirt yet because he was just too comfortable, and a part of him wanted to tease Ash. Speaking of, he wasn't in the bedroom, so he assumed he wasn't done with the shower, but then he heard clutter in the kitchen.

When he walked in there, he saw Ash clad in a black shirt and white boxers, and his short frame was trying to reach something in a high cupboard. Upon closer inspection, Gary chuckled when he saw the box of cookies.

"Hey."

Ash jumped a little and saw Gary with his tongue in his cheek, clearly amused. "I was…um. I'm a bit…"

"I just gave you ice cream and you're still craving for sweets?"

"You know me better than that, Gary," Ash smirked.

Gary shook his head and laughed again, and pulled him away from reaching the cookies, making him whine in the process but he was silenced after Gary kissed him. In an instant Ash forgot about the cookies and focused only on Gary's lips. He also couldn't resist the urge to touch the taller boy's torso all over again, it was like an addiction.

Ash's hands and lips were warm and Gary's breath stopped for a minute, and then his exhale came out as a tremble. He unknowingly pushed Ash against the counter, leaving him with nowhere to run. Gary wrapped his arms around him and kissed him deeper, his tongue once again tracing the younger boy's lips. Ash gladly opened his lips to meet Gary's tongue, now more eager to engage into the passion.

They continued like that for a couple minutes, and then Gary shifted and moved his thigh against Ash's crotch, and with that feeling along with Gary's tongue massaging his own in a way that felt dizzying, the younger boy moaned in the brunette's mouth. Gary's heart skipped a beat. But he didn't dare stop, it felt too good and they were in a moment where they attached themselves so emotionally that they couldn't separate.

Ash began feeling uncomfortable though, for the edge of the counter was digging in his back, but he didn't want to pull away. So he tried to send some kind of signal to Gary by slowly rolling his hips against his. Gary made a low sound of pleasure and fortunately for Ash, the brunette picked him up and made his legs wrap around his waist. Ash tightly wrapped his arms around his neck, wanting to get close to Gary as possible. The brunette wanted to walk straight to the bedroom, but couldn't because he felt like he was going to fall in his state of drowning bliss. So he slammed Ash against the wall, but not too hard.

With Ash securely constricted around Gary, the taller boy made the move to lift up Ash's shirt, breaking the kiss in the process to fully remove the piece of clothing. Gary heard Ash mumble his name and upon hearing that he moaned silently again and placed his lips against his neck. The smaller boy let escape a few more breathy moans before Gary made his mark.

Gary moved his lips to his collarbone and was beginning to make another mark. Ash moved one of his hands to the brunette's spiky hair and tightly gripped it. "G-Gary," he whispered before letting out a groan. "Please…I…I want…" he couldn't finished his sentence for he was too hot in his pool of bliss.

Gary slowly paused, his heart racing. What did he want? To go all the way? That can't be. He stopped all of his actions and let Ash's feet fall safely on the floor.

It got cold immediately for Ash as Gary backed away, and the brown-eyed boy was confused and lonely. "Gary? What's wrong?"

But before Gary could think of a reply, he ran to his room and shut the door along with locking it.

_**XX**_

The brunette was shaking, on the verge of an anxiety attack. How could he? How _dare_ he? The same exact thing was happening all over again, like the incidents in Sayda Island, with all those girls he had intoxicated with his way of pleasuring them. And what happened in the end? He emotionally hurt himself as well as some of the girls who wanted to be committed. Ash was evidently an entirely different story – Gary loved him and he wanted to do everything with him. He wanted to make every minute count, and not have him regret anything.

Ash was too young. Well, seventeen isn't exactly young anymore, Gary realized. But still, Ash was so _innocent_. And Gary only wanted to stop at kissing, and maybe just do the deed the next time they see each other. He didn't care how long that would be, he just knew that it would probably be the right thing and neither of them would regret it. The brunette really did want to do it with the younger boy, he really did. But Ash's mom and Gary's grandpa gets in the way of that too. What would happen if they both found out the things they were doing? Ash's mom didn't know her son was gay, and his grandpa would probably blame everything on him.

Which would cause everything to go back to square one. And knowing how protective Mrs. Ketchum was at times, she would probably make it her number one rule for Ash to never see Gary, ever again. And he could see the look on his grandpa's face, along with his head shaking in disappointment. Gary did not want to go through that again. And he hated breaking down in front of Ash, and no matter how good his comforts felt, he didn't want to do it again for the rest of the week.

Gary loved him too much to see the latter get hurt, especially from the brunette himself. It was just better off this way, just waiting until it was the right time.

The black-haired boy had been knocking on Gary's door for the past thirty minutes. "Gary! Come on! Please, don't do this to me…"

Gary got the courage to at least walk up to the door, but he didn't unlock it, not just yet. "Ash…I'm sorry, I didn't want to go that far."

"Why?"

Gary licked his dry lips. He could just hear Ash tearing up. "I don't want to hurt you in any way. It's too soon, I mean…don't you think we're moving too fast?"

"Maybe, but…I honestly don't care. We have less than five days to spend together, and who knows when we'll see each other again?"

"No matter how long the wait is for that, it'll be better by then."

"But what's to say you'll be so caught up in your work that it'll be another three years? Or maybe even more than that? What if you get repositioned in another area that's farther than Kanto? I can't take that risk, Gary…I just can't. Please, I missed you so much…I want to do this with you."

Gary then bit his lip; he knew that the boy on the other side was now crying. He sighed, "I just don't want you to regret it…any of it." He touched the door, wanting to hug Ash so bad.

"I won't…I guarantee it."

The brunette shook his head sadly, "How do you know that?"

It was just above a whisper, but Gary understood him perfectly, "Because I love you."

He stared at the door, not believing what he had just heard. He felt like all of his oxygen has been depleted. His mouth couldn't stutter a single word.

"Gary…open the door."

Still in shock, it took him a few moments before he finally, but slowly, undid the lock and turned the knob, opening it to see the younger boy, his brown eyes shining with tears.

"W-What did you just…say?"

Ash walked up to him and gave him the tiniest of kisses. "I love you. I always did, from the moment I realized that there is nobody else in this world that could make me happy as much as you."

Gary looked at him for a prolonged time, and realizing he still won't say anything yet, Ash continued, "I trust you enough, Gary. I really want this…I want every moment of every day of this week to last, and to make it count. I want to make up for the last three years that we didn't see each other…Please. Give in to me, Gary."

And he finally did, with a tender kiss enough for Ash to know that Gary loved him back.

Taking advantage of the bedroom, Ash's dominant side pushed Gary onto the bed, moving up to the pillows with his legs on either side of his hips. His hands roamed his torso as Ash moved his lips to the brunette's neck, softly kissing it before moving down to his collarbone. His breath and his lips were hot, giving off an electric feeling on Gary's skin. When Ash moved his lips to his ribcage, his hands settled on the rim of the brunette's pajama pants and slowly moved it down, revealing his boxers. Ash removed the rest of the pants, and then Gary pulled Ash back up and flipped him over.

Gary used one hand to grip through Ash's soft, raven hair as he kissed his neck again. Kissing that area was addicting to him, the way Gary could smell his coconut scented hair and the way he could feel his soft and vulnerable neck. The brunette started nibbling on the curve of his neck, and he seemed to hit a really sensitive spot because soon after, Ash erupted a string of audible moans.

His noises of pleasure were right next to Gary's ear, making him fall deeper in bliss. He moved to the other side of his neck and made more love bites. Ash arched his back and his hips rolled against Gary's. The brunette was losing his composure, one by one. His breaths were short and his body felt like it was in paradise.

One other tiny reason why Gary didn't want to do this was because he had a _very_ hard time controlling himself in situations like this. Especially when doing it with Ash Ketchum. Gary had been wanting to do this to the younger boy ever since he hit puberty. His hormones were unmanageable and he tried everything to keep them under control, which included punching a wall repeatedly, having sex with girls, and just plain out letting his emotions flow out of him. They always found their way back though, and Gary felt like he couldn't take it anymore.

He hated being a teenager, absolutely despised it. He was happy when he turned eighteen so he could actually be treated like an adult and feel like one. But whenever he saw a picture or even heard the name of Ash Ketchum, those hormones had him jumping off the walls.

He had so many dreams and daydreams about the black-haired boy that he even had to take a couple days off of work because he couldn't focus. He even cried out of frustration just because he couldn't even touch the boy.

But now here they were, about to make love and the brunette didn't want to hold it in anymore.

His hips forcibly thrust back into Ash's, making his groans louder. Gary kissed Ash hotly as his hand let go of his hair and moved down his soft body, feeling every curve he possessed. He reached the rim of his boxers and didn't hesitate to slip through the piece of clothing and touch his sacred area.

Ash moaned quite audibly in the kiss, and he wanted to pull away so his moans could get some air, but Gary refused to let him go. The brunette stroked his hardness, pushing his boxers down to his mid-thighs in the process. Ash squirmed and whimpered beneath him, desperate for release already and wanting Gary to speed up his strokes. But Ash could _feel_ him smirking.

While he was squirming however, his boxers moved their way back up, and Gary pulled away to fully remove them. Ash let out a gasp of air, but he didn't have long to contain himself for Gary immediately went back to caressing his manhood.

Ash had touched himself quite a few times before, but having another person do it, especially Gary, was an entirely new feeling, and it felt so much better. He gripped the bed sheets underneath him and closed his eyes tightly, his moans escaping his lips every second.

Gary reveled in the sight before him. He looked so vulnerable, with his skinny body wide open and his hands clutching the sheets and the pillows. He also noticed just now that his slim legs were spread open due to Gary's hips being in between them. Not being able to help himself, he rubbed his hardness against his entrance, and the friction caused by his underwear made it that much more desirable for Ash, who let out a helpless moan. He wrapped his legs around Gary's waist and pulled him in as close as possible.

Gary realized that his hand was starting to get wet from Ash's pre-cum and decided to stop now, and as much as he didn't want to, he had to pry Ash's legs off of him, but only for a moment.

Ash opened his eyes and his face filled with worry again but when he saw Gary open his drawers and pull out something that looked like a bottle of lubrication, he sighed in relief. When he sat back down on the bed, setting the lube aside real quick, Ash took this chance to kiss him again, supporting himself by his knees and his arms wrapped around Gary's neck.

Gary caressed Ash's curves again, moving down lower to his derriere and groped it, Ash letting out a sound that was a mixture of a moan and a laugh. The brunette smiled and pulled away from Ash, looking at him with eyes filled with love.

"You're absolutely sure you want to do this?" The older boy asked after he touched Ash's cheek, his thumb stroking his signature zigzag lines that always made Ash special.

Ash looked into his eyes with pure innocence. He was nervous, yes. He was slightly scared as well, but the feeling of love and lust overcame that feeling. He waited for this specifically just so he could do it with Gary, because he knew if that the brunette loved him back, their love making would be filled with pleasure and passion, and the moment has finally come. He definitely wanted this, with Gary only and nobody else. He was ready to give in and take in all that Gary could provide to him.

"Yes. I'm totally sure, because I trust you and I love you."

Gary grinned and he nuzzled his nose against Ash's, "I love you too." He then placed his lips on his forehead and pushed him back down. He pulled away just enough to remove his own boxers and reached for the lube. He opened the lid and squeezed out some of the substance on his fingers. He placed them right before his entrance and looked up just in time to see Ash clutch the pillows beneath his head. The brown-eyed boy looked straight into Gary and he nodded with a small smile.

The brunette held on to Ash's upper thigh to keep him from writhing too much, and with his other hand, he slowly began to make his way in with a single finger. Ash took a sharp inhale and closed one eye. It didn't hurt too much, but with this being his very first time it felt peculiar. Gary's finger felt warm though, and that sort of helped.

Ash closed both of his eyes now and took deep breaths, trying to rid of the weird feeling that he continued to get. But then a couple minutes later when Gary added a second finger, he felt a new feeling. No, not new, but that feeling of ecstasy. The feeling of being stretched out did it for him and he got chills of bliss and let out a moan. That encouraged Gary and decided to go in deeper, spreading his legs a bit wider and moving his fingers faster.

Just a little more experimenting and…

"Aaahh!"

Gary bit his bottom lip to keep him from smirking too much. That was like pure music to his ears.

'_Thank Arceus that Dora and Crystal aren't here…' _He thought to himself for he immediately knew how loud Ash would be tonight…

Gary massaging his special spot felt phenomenal – he was hot all over and couldn't open his eyes, his body had waves of delight that made him feel weak, and he felt like he was in a reverie. He felt like he could cry because it felt that good. He trembled under the satisfying touches and he had no warning for when he let out another loud moan, his member already came, his body slightly going under spastic attacks.

After he calmed down, he didn't feel Gary's fingers in him anymore, but he did hear him laughing. He blushed heatedly and yelled, "Shut up!"

His laughs turned into silent chuckles and nuzzled in Ash's neck, "You're adorable."

The raven-haired boy rolled his eyes, but then smiled afterwards, "Whatever. Now you know how you make me feel."

"Mmm, but I'm not done yet, you know," he reminded him before he gave him a chaste kiss.

Ash bit his lips, nervousness creeping back up after his feeling of lust died down a bit. But he still wanted it, no matter what.

Gary tried to swallow away his pumping heart in his throat as he applied the lube to his member generously. He was probably more nervous than Ash was, because he didn't want to be the cause of any physical pain. He knew it would hurt for Ash initially and he hated knowing that. Even if they had waited to make love, it would still be painful no matter how long the wait. But in the end, it would be worth it. It _should_ be worth it. At the same time, underneath all that uneasiness, Gary couldn't wait to pour all of his love in Ash.

He shifted so that he was right above Ash, so he could look straight into those innocent chocolate eyes. "It'll hurt for a bit, okay? In order to make it better, you need to relax as much as you can. And if you want to stop, let me know…I don't want you to regret this, Ashy…"

The younger boy smiled warmly at the nickname and his words of support. He wrapped his arms around the taller boy's neck and brought him down for an assuring, long kiss. "I won't regret it…I promise. Just knowing that you'll make sure that I'm okay is good enough. Now, uh…make me a man, Gary," he joked, making Gary chuckle and kiss him with all his heart.

Soon after, Gary positioned himself in front of Ash's rosy entrance, and before finally going in, he gave the smaller boy a small kiss on the shoulder.

Ash felt the vast size difference between Gary's two fingers and his hardness. His heart jumped in his throat, but he remembered he had to try and relax. But when Gary passed his entrance, that's when he could feel the pain. He tightly closed his eyes and brought Gary closer, his face next to the whimpering boy's neck.

Gary grabbed a hold of one of Ash's arms and then linked their hands together. "Shh…relax…it'll be okay."

Ash nodded and signaled Gary to move on. But when he was halfway in, Ash gripped Gary's hand so tightly that it was going numb. Gary could feel the boy trembling and breathing haphazardly. He stopped moving to ask,

"Are you still sure?"

Ash relaxed his eyes, and when he did so, a single tear fell out. But he didn't want to stop. Not when the night has been so romantic. He slowed down his breathing and loosened his tight grip on Gary's poor hand. After a few minutes, he decided, and although he was still shaking, he said yes.

Gary kissed his neck tenderly and started moving again. After what felt like an hour, he was finally fully inside him. As much as the brunette tried to focus on what Ash was feeling, he couldn't help but drink in the feeling of how warm and velvety Ash felt. He bit his lip and nuzzled Ash's neck, making him sigh of ease – the first good sign.

The pain for Ash eventually withered away, but he was still adjusting to Gary. He accidentally tightened on him a bit too snug and his skin shivered in bliss. Ash muttered to Gary that he could go ahead and start. Gary kissed his hair and he started to leisurely thrust into him, and at a short length too. He took small pauses before thrusting again and moved away a bit to see Ash's reactions. His breath was still a bit shaky, but his face otherwise started to show pleasure.

Gary gradually stopped pausing in between thrusts and eventually to make them longer and deeper, but not yet too fast or hard. Gary removed his hand from the latter's hand and Ash put it back around his shoulders.

Ash was at a strange borderline right now. He was still feeling pain but he could feel the ecstasy start to rise up but now it seemed to have stopped. Then he realized that Gary has been going at the same pace for quite a bit now, and so he looked into those green eyes of his and confidently whispered,

"Gary…faster."

The brunette obeyed his wishes and steadily sped up his movements, now hearing quiet moans escape from the younger boy's throat. He didn't want to lose control, not now and not yet, for Ash was still vulnerable to pain. But his mind was getting hazy from how amazing Ash felt inside, and how it felt rejuvenating to finally be inside the one he loved this whole time. There were no fake feelings, no guilty conscience, and having immature, raging hormones. This was all real, and Gary was happy.

Absent-mindedly, he went faster and faster, but Ash no longer minded. Every single thrust sent waves and waves of bliss, and his mouth couldn't hold back the screams anymore. He felt like he was in a fire, burning with ecstasy and no pain. To feel Gary's built body rubbing against him, to feel his hot, bated breath run across his skin, it was paradise.

"Ahh…_Gary…_" He whimpered as he rolled his head back, digging his nails in Gary's back, leaving scratches and deep marks.

Gary couldn't see anymore besides the moaning boy beneath him. He couldn't feel anymore besides the hot pleasure running across him. It was unbelievable. Gary couldn't fathom on why he wanted to wait to do this with Ash. It felt so good, so perfect, and it was with the one he loved. This felt far better than anyone he had sex with. However, he felt like he could break any moment now.

"A-Ash…I can't…_fuck_…hold it in anymore…"

Ash didn't hear him clearly with all the heat running in his ears, "Wh..What? Aah…" He couldn't speak properly anymore, he was a complete mess under Gary's deep thrusts.

Gary felt like he could die right there if he didn't give in, so he did, and his breaking point included him grabbing Ash's legs and putting them on his shoulders, and the deep penetration and the repeated stimulation on his prostate made Ash scream out to the heavens, letting the angels know who Ash belonged to. If Ash bit down on his screams, he would still be whimpering in mercy. His fingernails left long scratches on the brunette's back before moving his hands to the bed sheets, almost ripping them out.

Gary enveloped himself around Ash, kissing him ferociously and biting his lips, he was hungry for more and so he went as fast as he could, and Ash never complained once. The brunette eventually found himself pinning down Ash's wrists and the younger boy wrapped his legs around his waist, as if they weren't deep enough.

Sweat clung onto them, and they were sure that the room was getting steamy from their hot love-making. They both found it hard to breathe, but had no intentions of stopping, not yet.

But Gary could feel it, he could feel his release coming to a close. Ash could sense it as well, with the brunette's member throbbing significantly. His own hardness was like that as well, and when Gary kissed him with all his might, he couldn't hold it in anymore and reached his climax, his liquid landing on both their stomachs, but neither of them cared.

Gary's grip on Ash's wrists tightened and his thrusts went faster as he was soon coming, closer and closer and then he finally released his hotness inside Ash, groaning until he finally came to a stop.

He rested his head on top of Ash's, kissing his forehead from time to time until they both calmed down. Gary pulled out carefully, and finally settled on the mattress, his back in relief. Ash smiled upon seeing this and cuddled close to Gary, tracing patterns on his chest. Gary kissed his head and caressed his hair, sharing the smile with Ash.

Both of them didn't feel the need to talk about it – they both knew how they felt. It was just plain out amazing, and they were glad that they didn't wait until the next three years or so to do it. It was worth it, and Ash didn't regret a single moment.

Instead, to end this perfect night, they exchanged long kisses and I love you's.

* * *

**Okay I really originally wanted to update this much sooner, like a week sooner, but then I got sick and I also became a huge perfectionist with this chapter and I don't even know why... Ugh lol whatever. I know I said I had a oneshot coming up soon, and I swear I really am working on that it's just...taking awhile xD It's a long oneshot, okay so shut up. Also, I had no idea how much school stressed me out. Ugh. Anywho...**

**I hope you liked this chapter! You better have, this is the longest chapter yet filled with so much lust! ;D But aww, they're finally together! But they only have a few more days left! Uh oh...wonder how they'll work that out.. hmm... That's for you to think about and for me to write about! xD Hopefully I won't take a month to update again. See you soon, then! And maybe look out for my one-shot, I may or may not publish it before or after the next chapter.**

**As always...reviews are much appreciated! Thanks for reading!**


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